AN: Just a short one-shot I wrote after rewatching the Avengers. Something about the fight scene between Natasha and Clint caught my eye and wouldn't let me go. The second time Clint tried to shoot Natasha with an arrow he aimed at her feet. Not a kill shot. This story takes place in Stark tower after the battle of Manhattan. This is fluffy for me, but I couldn't get this scene out of my head. As always reviews are welcome and appreciated.

I will be updating my other story Going Hunting soon. A computer crash and other issues has really delayed it. Sorry.

Images of the things he'd done over the last couple of days kept running through his head. Killing a security guard in Germany, Blowing up one of the engines on the Helicarrier, sending an explosive arrow onto the bridge. All of it replaying over and over. The worst was his fight with Natasha. He could remember exactly what Loki was going to have him do to her, just the thought of it made him sick to his stomach. Worse was the fact that Clint himself had told Loki exactly what would be the most tortuous way for Natasha to die. What would have her begging him to kill her. He'd betrayed her in a way he'd never thought anyone could make him do.

All Clint wanted now was to check on Natasha and then leave. She'd been keeping something from him back on the Helicarrier. Loki had done something to her, she just didn't want him to know what that had been. If Loki had fucked with her mind in any way like he had his, Clint didn't care what Fury or Thor wanted. He'd kill Loki next time he saw him. But he didn't even know what part of the tower she was staying in. The last time Clint had seen her she had been talking quietly with Banner. Reassuring the doctor that whatever had happened up on the Helicarrier hadn't been his fault.

Clint felt the change in the air in the room and knew Natasha had managed to silently enter his room undetected. No one else would have been able to get that close to him without him knowing. Clint didn't turn around, she'd say something when she was ready and he didn't know what to say to her. Sorry really didn't seem like it was going to cover it.

Natasha stood in the room studying Clint. He had on a pair of sweatpants that Stark must have provided for him but nothing else. She could see a few angry red welts were glass had torn into his back when he'd gone through the window and some bruising. But there were no signs of anything more serious, at least not physically. That he hadn't turned around and made some snarky comment about her needing to wear a bell told her that mentally he was not in a good place. Natasha walked up behind him and placed her hand on his shoulder, speaking softly to him "Clint you can't blame yourself for what happened. This is all on Loki, not you."

"Can't I?!" Clint turned around, noticing that his voice was harsher than it should be. "Because I sure as hell remember being the one shooting off those arrows. You should remember it too, since I aimed a couple of those shots at you!" Clint let his eyes rake up and down Natasha to look for any signs of serious injury noticing what she was wearing. She wasn't in her usual garb of shorts and a tank top or even some old t-shirt. Christ the woman was standing there in lingerie, very short, royal blue silk, lingerie.

Seeing Clint's raised eyebrow at her choice in apparel Natasha shrugged "Stark. I'm probably lucky I got this." Natasha was glad for the momentary distraction, she hadn't been sure how to respond to Clint. Something about what he'd just said was nagging at her. Natasha suddenly remember what Dr. Selvig had said to her on the roof. Part of him had known what he was doing that's why Selvig had built a failsafe to shut the tesseract down. Suddenly she knew exactly what to say to Clint, she just needed to get him to listen.

Clint could see Natasha was about to saying something more, but he wasn't done discussing her outfit. Anything to keep from talking about what he'd done. "Stark left me a t-shirt if you want it. It will at least cover more of you than that." he really needed her to take him up on the offer. The silk was cut very low in the front and was hugging every curve she had.

Natasha smirked, she knew what Clint was doing and she wasn't going to let him get away with it. "No thanks and I didn't come here to discuss my wardrobe."

"Or lack thereof. Why did you come here Nat? Because I'm not really in the mood to talk about what happened with Loki." So much for distracting her or getting her to wear something that was less…less fucking hot. Clint wondered what the hell was wrong with him. Not twenty-four hours ago he'd been trying to kill her, now he wanted to do something entirely different to her. Honestly though he'd wanted that something else for years now, but they'd both chosen to ignore the sexual tension between them for the sake of their partnership and friendship.

Natasha unaware of the turn Clint's thoughts had taken gently pulled him down on to the bed to sit next to her. "Fine you don't have to talk, but you do have to listen. Loki may have had control of some of what you were doing, but not all of it."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better? I tried to kill you Nat. I did get others killed." Clint said, attempting to stand back up. Natasha was too close. It had never bothered him before, but now he needed some distance between them before he did something stupid. Her damn outfit had ridden up when she'd sat down leaving very little to Clint's imagination. And his imagination had never needed any help picturing Natasha naked.

Natasha grabbed Clint's arm to keep him beside her. She reached up to his cheek turning his head to face her. He was certainly edgy tonight, he couldn't seem to stay still. "Listen to me Clint. Yes because of Loki you blew up the engine on the Helicarrier, but as for trying to kill me. Well, if that's your idea of taking a kill shot with your bow, you need to start hitting the range more often.' Seeing that he was going to interrupt her again Natasha shook her head. "No, let me finish. Selvig told me that a part of him had been aware of what he'd been doing. That was why he built the failsafe into the Tesseract, enabling me to be able to shut the portal down. You…some part of you had to have been aware of what you were doing too. Because unless you were planning on me bleeding out from a hole in my foot your second shot wasn't going to do anything other than piss me off if you'd hit me."

"Natasha I was trying to put a knife to your throat and slice it open. That pretty much qualifies as trying to kill you." Clint wondered if maybe she was trying to convince herself he hadn't done anything to betray her, but he knew what he'd been thinking when they'd fought. He'd have killed her if he'd gotten the chance. Clint shifted slightly to make Natasha's hand drop from his face. She was making it very difficult for him to remember all the reasons why he'd never pursued a more intimate relationship with her.

The man was being stubborn, he really was determined not to listen to what she was telling him "Please, That was barely a fight. First off you let me take your bow away from you. Not once in all the times we've trained together have you ever let me get your bow away from you. Secondly, you left me more openings than I can count. When was the last time either one of us took the other down in less than ten minutes. That fight on the Helicarrier didn't even last three." Natasha tried to lighten the mood, "You let me win, but given the circumstances I'll forgive you for it just this once. But don't ever do it again."

"I..I want to believe that Nat, but I don't know. All I remember is how badly I wanted to kill you. I want to believe that some part of me was trying to stop myself." Clint laid down on his back sorting through what Natasha had just said to him. He looked over at her. Mistake Barton, big mistake. There was even less to her get-up in the back. It was cut indecently low, with straps that crisscrossed her back and were so delicate they looked like they were barely keeping the piece on her. Clint reached up and lightly traced the bruise on her back. He felt Natasha tremble in response to his touch and knew he was in big trouble. "Did I do this?"

Natasha lay down on her side next to Clint, propping herself up on her elbow so she could look at him. "No, the Hulk used me for batting practice on the Helicarrier. It wasn't Banner's fault. Loki was getting into all our heads, winding us up." Something with Clint had changed, he'd touched her before but never like he'd just done. His touch had seemed almost like a caress to Natasha and not his usual clinical examination of her injuries.

Clint turned to face Natasha, his hand cupping her neck and his thumb tracing her jawline. "Christ Nat, was everyone trying to kill you today? I'm sorry, I wish…I want." What he wanted was to lose himself in her until the rest of the world disappeared and there was only the two of them left. He wanted to learn every luscious curve, every inch of her body until he knew it as well as his own hand.

Things had definitely changed, Natasha could see the hunger in Clint's eyes and felt desire pool in her stomach in response. She'd thought she might lose him to Loki. Now that she knew they were both safe she didn't want to pretend there was nothing more than friendship between them anymore. Her tongue darted out to wet her lower lip. "What Clint? What do you want?"

Clint watched Natasha's tongue and felt his breath catch. He'd almost lost her and it would have been at his own hand. He wanted her more than he'd ever wanted anything before in his life. He was done shoving how he felt about her aside, ignoring it. Clint rolled them both over so that Natasha was lying beneath him. "I want this" He said then ran his tongue up her neck to nip on her earlobe. "I want to know what happens if I do this" as he used his thumb to trace circles in the silk over her nipple, watching her face as her body arched up to into his touch. "I want you, Tasha." He said as before kissing her hungrily. Desire knifed through him when Natasha returned his kiss, her hunger matching his own.

Natasha felt like her heart was going to beat its way out of her chest. Clint had broken the kiss and was staring at her intently, she knew what he wanted. He wanted her to tell him it was ok to continue, but she was having a hard time catching her breath. She knew Clint he would stop if she didn't give him permission. Natasha was pretty sure if he stopped she'd kill him. Running her fingers across the expanse of his chest Natasha looked him in the eyes. "I want this, I want you."

Clint let his eyes rake down Natasha's body. "I think I'm going to have to buy Stark a very nice bottle of scotch for giving you this outfit. I'm just not sure what possessed you to wear it."

Natasha let out a small chuckle. "Tony's attempts at playing the misogynistic pig amuse me, he really is an amateur at it. So if he wants to watch security feed of me walking down the hallway wearing this, I don't care."

Clint's eyes narrowed "Well I sure as hell do." He growled out , moving his hand up her stomach to cup her breast "I may buy you one of these in every color they make. But I better be the only one that see's you in them."

Natasha smiled, reaching up to run her hand through Clint's hair. "I can live with that. Forget about Tony, make love to me Clint."

"I plan on it darlin…" He replied before kissing her again.